Spark-plug attachment.



'0. T. -GAH'HER & L. H. BLACK,y SPARK PLUG ATTACHMENT. I' APPLICATIQN FILED JAN. 5, 1911.,

/VVENTORS Patented July 25, 1911.

'UNITED .STATES 'PATENT orrron.

CHARLES '.r. GAITHER AND LOUIS HjBLACK, or vounesrown, oHI-o.

SPARK-PLUG ATTACHMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patenteuauly 2 5, 1911.`

Application led January 5,1911. Serial No. 601,035.

To all'whom it may concern: i l

Beit known thatwe, CHARLES T. GAITHER and LOUIS H. BLACK, citiz'ens of the United States, residing at Youngstown, .in 4the county of Mahoning and State of Ohio, have invented fcertain new and useful Improvements in `,Spark-Plug Attachments, ofwhich the following is avspeciicatio'n.

The present invention relates 1n general to spark plugs such are employed in con-` nection with internal combustion engmes for ignlting the .explosive charges,y and more particularly `to a spark fplugattachment 'which embodies novel features of construction whereby anoperator can accurately and quickly determine which cylinder of a multi# cylinder' engine is missing fire, and which will also indicate whether the trouble is due to' faulty. battery connections or tov accumulations upon the' poles of-l the plug.

One 'of thebbject's of the invention is the rovisionof an attachmentof this character which issimpleand inexpensive in'its con-l struction, which. can be readilyy applied to whichwill-form an -effective means for inany conventional form of spark plug withf outginterfering' with the action thereof orA necessitating any alterations therein', and

dicating whichl cylinder of an engine is miss'- ing fire."

lVith these and otherobjects 1n View', the

invention consists in certain@ combinations and arrangementsof the parts-as will more fully appear, as'. the description proceeds,

the novel features thereof being pointed out in the appended claims. v

For afull understanding of the invent-ion, reference is to be had tothe following descri tion and accom an inv drawing in Vwhich i vFigur-el is a side elevation of a spark plug having the attachment applied thereto, the lower end of the spark plug being shown lin sect-ion', andthe attachment being shown in an inoperative position by full lines and -in an operative position by dotted lines.

Fig. 2 is'a detail View showing the attachment removed from the spark plug, andFig. 3 is a plan view of the plate forming apart of the attachment. l a

Corresponding and like' parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawing by the same reference characters.

Specifically describing the embodiment of the invention illustrated upon the accompanying sheet'of drawing, the letter designates a spark plug which is of the conventional construction and embodies a base 1 which is exteriorly Athreaded so 'as to be ."screwed into the head of an engine cylinder in the usual manner.V Carried by the inner end of the base 1 and, designed to project into the' engine cylinder when the lspark plug -is applied 'theretojis' a perforated disk 2 which constitutes one ofthe poles of .the plug, the opposite pole of the plug being in the natureof a pointed stem 3 which pro- )ects into the lopening of the disk 2 but is spaced therefrom. f This stem 3 extends f through asleeve 4 of porcelain or similar material bymeansv of whichit is insulated from the base 1, and lis in electrical connect1on with the usual. binding post'at the top of the spark plug, the said binding post in-' -cluding the threaded stem 5 and the nut .Gf

`'the circuit is liable to become interrupted by accumrilations upon the poles of' the spark plug,rand also'b'ya poor Contact between the terminal wire and the binding post. l-Vith a. multi-,cylinder .engine considrable difficulty is frequently experienced in discovering which one ofV the cylinders is missing fire, it being 4usually vnecessary to successively disconnect all of the spark plugs but one until the engine stops running, when the cylinder causing the trouble will have vbeen located. 'The present'invention obviates the trouble of disconnecting the spark plugs or breaking the .electrical circuit through the same, and this resultis accomplished by anattachment by means of'which the current can beshort circuitediny such a manner as to render the spark plugs inop.

erative. U

'The attachment is shown as including a plate 7 one end-of which is perforated .to

receive the threaded ste/m 5 of the binding vpost and is clamped against the top of the spa-rk plug byv means ofthe binding nut 6.

` minals'of the y'circuitis designed to be con y The l opposite end of the plate 7 projects laterally from the top of the spark plug and carries afriction sleeve 8 within which a receiving al shock.

. closely'wound coil spring which extends' through an ,opening in the outer end of the' contact stem y9`is slidably mo'unted.` rlhc frictional engagementy between `the 'stem 9 and the sleeve Scauses'the Astem to remainI in any set position7 and the upper end of the stem is provided with a finger piece 10 by means ofwhich the stem can be readily ma nipulated without danger -of the operator In lthe present, instance this friction sleeve 8 is in the' nature of a plate 7 and has an intermediate portion thereof soldered or otherwise rigidly secured" Y to the said plate. Under normal conditions, the contact stem 9 is drawn upwardly away from thebas'e of the spark` plug.- so that the ,attachment-.does not interfere in anymanner with the usualoperation of the spark plug.,` However7 it will be entirely obvious that byfsliding the stem down wardly into contact with the base l, a short circuit will bel produced and the spark plug ,rendered inoperative. It will also be obvious" that-by movi-ngthe stem 9 downwardly close i' to the-y base 0f thel spark plug, but notin 1' defective.

contact` therewith, it may be determined whether or not the battery connections are lf the connections are perfect,

y sparks will pass between the stem and-the b ase of the sparky plug7 while if the' connections are defective, 4there will be no sparks.

.The strength of the batteries will also be indicated by the intensity of the spark and' the length ofthe air gap which the sparks will cross.

Should it Vbe `desired to determine whicl 'cylinder of a muticylmder engine 1s missing fire, the stems 9 of-all of the spark plugs with the exception of one would be moved downwardly into contact with the bases of the spark plugs so as to renderthe said spark plugs inoperative. If the engine still continued to run, it'would indicate that the single spark plug in operation was work'- .ing perfectly, and that the trouble was with anotherl cylinder. All of the cylinders would thus be successively tested until thel engine stopped, when the cylinder causing t-he trouble would have been located. In

Having thus described the invention, what.y

ters Patent, ,is :e

we claim as new and desire to secure by Let l. A spark plug attachment including slidably mounted contactrod carried by the' head of the spark plug and adaptedto be moved into contact with the base thereofto render the spark plug inoperative. i 2. A spark plug attachment including a sleeve, means for mounting the sleeve uponv the head of the spark plug', and a contact rod slidably mountedwithin thesleeve-and adapted to .be moved into contact with the base of the .spa-rk plug to renderthe said spark plug inoperative.

3. A spark plug attachment including a plate detachably applied tothe head Aof the 4. Aspark plugnttach'ment including'a plate constructefdfft'o fit around the stem of the binding post-"and be clamped in position by thebindinxginut, a friction sleeve carried by the plate,- and a contactrod slidably mounted within the friction sleeve .and

adapted to be moved into contact witlrthe base of thelspark plug to short circuit 'the said `sparkfplug and render the same-inoperative. y

, 5. A spark rplug attachment including a spiral spring, means' for mounting the spiral spring upon the head of the spark plug. vand a contact rod slidably mounted within the spiral spring and'adapted to be moved into contact with the-base of the spark plug to short circuit the said spark plug and render the same inoperative. 1 6. A spark plug attachment including a platev adapted to fit `around the stem lof the binding post and be clamped in position by the-birding nut, a vspiral spring' mounted upfpi, theplate. an'd a contactrod slidably mounted within the spirah spring and adapted to be moved .into Contact 1with the base of the spark plug to shortcircuit the said spark plug and rendcrthesame inoperative. f 1" ln testimony whereof we hereunto affix our vsignatures in the presence of` two witnesses. v

,CHARLES T. GAITHERQ l LOUIS H. BLACK.

Witnesses:

CHAS. F. SCHLARB,

`W. J. ROBERTS. 

